Decisions, Decisions!!

Ok, we apparently need a new toilet in our house. We currently have a crane that is 10 yrs old and have been told by our local plumber that is a very poor toilet(constant need for a plunger). I said ok, well, what do you have available. He told me that they either sell Mansfield or the Kohler Wellworth and of course he says they(the Kohler) is the best toilet out there. I did some research, came across the ToTo toilets, read great reviews on them so I asked my plumber about them. He told me that he has heard good things about them but since there is no dealer around my area, he wouldnt recommend them because there is no parts for them and since they might not be around in the future, I would be left with a toilet that cant be fixed. On the other hand, he is really pushing the Kohler but have read that they are a poor toilet. The ToTo is more expensive, I was quoted $420 for the ToTo Drake, but found them cheaper online. Any suggestions would be greatly appreciated.

Any Lowes hardware carries the flapper and the fill valve for the Toto.
Those are made by Korky.
Parts are not a problem.

Toto is the largest plumbing company in the world.
They are only getting bigger.

Someone on the board mentioned the Kohler Pressure-Lite.
Has your plumber tried that model?

Terry

I dont know if he has tried that toilet, he did tell me that they have had problems with the pressure assisted toilets because I asked abou them. He basically said that they flush to fast and dont allow the waste to be carried away by the water. Is the Kohler Wellworth a good toilet? I dont mind spending the extra money for the ToTo, just wondering what are the benefits. Thanks.

I can understand your plumbers reluctance to recommend a Toto and push the Kohler...he can provide the Toto and can sell you the Kohler. The Toto is far and away the better toilet. The Drake is an excellent performer and will give you plunger-less service for a lifetime. Use the site Terry listed to find a dealer near you. Even if you have to travel to get one, it is worth it. If you are in any way handy, you should be able to install it yourself provided there are no problems with your flange or drain system and you have not indicated there are any.

Online dealers

Ok, Im going to go with the ToTo, but using the dealer locator, I wasnt able to find any dealers in my area. I live in SE Minnesota. Would it be worth getting one online?

On-line is a crap shoot...porcelain is brittle, shippers aren't generally gentle. I've had one broken in 5, some say I was lucky. Actually, I only got a notice that one was broken, it never made it to my door - the shipper and vendor replaced it prior to it getting to me, so the only way I knew was after I checked since it didn't arrive when it was supposed to. Better to buy locally if you can. If not, check things carefully before you sign for them. Keep in mind, too, that when you buy from the plumber, he acts as the warranty agent (generally). If you buy it, any labor is extra. When doing the work yourself (and installing a toilet isn't really rocket science for a typical replacement) is fairly easy. Also, if you aren't lucky, it could be a real pain installing if, say the flange is broken or rusted out. Still not rocket science, but may be beyond your capability.

100% of my Drakes ordered on-line arrived in great shape (which is to say: 2 out of 2), shipped via FedEx Ground. I paid around $300 for each of them, as I remember. In both cases the seller had a free shipping deal. Having said that, I admit I've probably been lucky -- it doesn't take much to damage a toilet in shipping.

The kohler wellworth is a wet stray dog of a toilet!
I would recommend building an outhouse before installing one of them!

Just a note here on their performance... My little brother had one installed when he had his beach house redone... Apparently one of the workers used it and it was clogged when he moved back in before he ever used it! I unclogged it for him and maxed it out performancewise but it still was later replaced with a Toto Drake which he's happy with.